Tire



1 T. LISTER.

TIRE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.22, I9I6.

Patented 001.1511920.

UNiTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN T. LISTER, 0F CLEVELAND, OHIO.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 19, 1920.

Application led September 22, 1916. Serial No. 121,541.

To aZZ whomz't may concern l Be it known that I, JOHN T. LIsTER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleve# land, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Tires,`of which the following is av full, clear, and exact description. i

This invention relates to tires for auto-- mobiles and the like, and has for its object to provide what is known as a semi-solid A tire which is durable and eiicient, it being one of the particular objects to construct the tire so that it will hold the air without leakage and will be able to withstand successfully, load stresses and other stresses such as are encountered when a tire is sub jected to rough usage. g Y

One of the features ofthe tire is the materials which are incorporated therein, andthe cross-sectional shape of the tire, that is to say, the manner in which the stress resisting materials' are formed. and ar ranged. The invention resides also especially in the shape and manner. of'securing the inner or rim portion of the'tire to the part forming the sides and tread portion.

In the accompanying sheet of .drawings wherein I have shown the preferred' form of my invention, Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of the improved tire of the clencher type, attached to they rim; and "Fig, 2 is a perspective View of a portion of the tire withportions broken. away.

The tire here shown, incl des a main or body portion 10, which iI substantially U-shaped, the sides being substantially straight and parallelV and extending in-v thoroughly rubberized so that when formed y into the tire shape, and when the tire is vulcanized, there will be formed an im: pervious, imperforate solid body of cords and rubber.= If desired, betweenadjacent` layers may be arranged thin layers of un- 14 is pre l.vulcan.ized,. sticky rubber which assists in reducingr friction of the adjacent layers in use, and assists in forming the solid mass of rubber and cord.

At the base or inner portion of the U-shaped body 10, the space between the straight and parallel sides is closed by the part 11 in the form of a strip which is thoroughly vulcanized at its edges in be 65 tween the sides of theI U-shaped portion. This closing 'piece or strip is preferably formed of the same materials, and is of the same thickness as that first described. In

fact, it is preferably formed integral with the part forming the U-shaped portion and is cut therefrom, and subsequently placed in the' position described, and vulcanized. In

' explanation of this it may be said that the portions 10 and 11 are preferably formed 75 on an annular core, U-shaped in cross-section, that' is, of a cross-sectional shape substantially that of the inside ofthe tire. In other words, it will have` a fiat, inner periphery, a rounded outer periphery and 30 straight sides. The cords forming the layers will be' wound spirally around th1s core, forming a closed tube with the crosssectional shape indicated. Before the first w\fund on the core, a layer of rubber layer is erably placed on the c ore, and.. when the desired number of layers of the cord, or cordand intervening layers of rub-A ber are applied to the core, a layer of rubber 15 is placed on the'outside of the tube so 90 that when the tube is formed, it will .be f covered on the inside and outside -w1th\ layers of rubber.

After the tube is formed, the inner portion, that is, the portion overlying the fiat inner periphery of the core, is cut out thus forming a fiat annulus or r1ng. Then the inneredge portions of the U-shapedpart,v -are bent outwardly to form the beads 16 and when the beads are fformed, this fiat V ring or annulus 11 which was cut fromthe tube is placed in'position between the. bead portions, or in substantially the position it occupied which is substantially the shape of the .tube when formed on the core. A -In this case 'I 'have shown a clenchertype of'tire, but instead of the clencher bead the tire may be will be readi y understood.

To complete the tire, and beforel final prior to being/cut from the tube, and after vulcanization a tube 1s formed 105 iven a straight side bead as n.

vulcanization, the tread port-ion 12 is applied to the tire. In this case VI have shown a tread portion composed of a body of rubber and cords which may extend circumferentially around the tread, and which are preferably somewhat thicker than the cords Jforming the body of the tire. In the event ythe tread portion 12 becomes Worn or torn C the air pressure with substantially no leakage, as the Walls are'so thick and solid, and the straight portions are so rigid that there is little chance for leakage or punctures, and even should there be leakage, or if the air pressure initially was less than normal, the sides of the tire are so formed that they can support Without', or with very little assistance from the air, the load of the vehicle, and even then the tire will not be crushed down to the rim as is always the case With a neumatic tire when deflated.

aving thus described my invention, what I claim is:

A semi-solid tire composed of a closed,

hollow, air-tight body formed by a substalk tially U -shaped member of superposed layers of cord, and a substantially straight annular piece of superposed layers of cord arranged between and secured at its edges -to the inner portions of said sides.

In testimony whereof 1 hereunto afiix my signature.

JOHN T. LISTER. 

